Health Department receives designation

CLEARFIELD—The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) has designated the Davis County Health Department as “Public Health Ready.”

The department received the recognition Jan. 10 for its ability to plan for, respond to, and recover from public health emergencies, according to a release. Leadership and staff within the department documented preparedness capabilities for reviewers in the latter half of 2017 that met the comprehensive preparedness benchmarks required by Project Public Health Ready (PPHR).

“We are proud this national association’s PPHR program recognized our high level of preparedness,” director of the DCHD Brian Hatch said in the statement. “This latest preparedness recognition is an extension of the hard work and dedication the department staff has put forth which allowed us to become nationally accredited in late 2015 through the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB). With both of these achievements, we will continue to improve and build upon our ability to quickly and effectively respond to any public health crisis.”

Recognition by PPHR also requires health departments to collaborate with their local, state and community partners to develop plans that account for all the constituents in their jurisdictions, the release said.

“This community is a leader in emergency preparedness – in public health, in public safety, and in other disciplines,” Hatch said in the statement.